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11.28.2009

So, last year, I was a bit saddened that I could not be around my parents and brothers for Christmas. Andrew and I had only been married about 2 weeks before we spent Thanksgiving with his parents locally in Mesa. The only thing that really surprised me was that his dad made me a gluten-free PUMPKIN PIE. I couldn't believe how good it tasted.

We decided this year that making a gluten free pumpkin pie the night before Thanksgiving was going to be a tradition for us. After much trial, and 2 stores later, we found the "Libby's" brand P. pie can filling and I made it at home at about 10pm! However, since the crust was going to be super tough & time consuming to make, We bought "tartlet" aluminum holders (They look like the aluminum pie holders, but they are like 4" across and tiny). I made 7 tiny pies w/o crusts. However, I decided to get original. On 4 of them I decided to crush pecans and placed that on the bottom of the pie. It actually turned out SUPER good! So, we will now have baby pumpkin-pecan pies every year for Thanksgiving :)

I know the holidays are supposed to be "merry & bright", but I always feel that at the end of another year, a little down. For some reason, money always has to be tight by Thanksgiving, it is not variable-- it is a definite. All I want to do is buy my husband, family, and friends wonderful gifts, but as the dollars add up, my guilt drives home too. I know it doesn't matter how much things cost, it's "the thought" and all that crap that counts. lol. IDK, I guess it's just 'cause the holidays remind me of all the things I can't have anymore. But, I also have more now: I.E. Andrew :)

Oh yes, and I am also so proud of my friends and friendly.

Jessica, just got back from a trip to Miami with her current work (They had some kind of meeting or something). She is also working super hard in order to earn a trip to Brazil next year! I know she can do it; she hasn't missed an 'earned' trip yet! Talking to her made me a little jealous: A few years ago that would of been my dream to travel the world like she does! Europe, Ireland, Miami, Brazil... how cool is that? I'm so proud of her!

Christy,Even though her Thanksgiving went to heck and fell through the morning of: She still remembered what Thanksgiving is all about: She called and talked to us individually that day, seeing what we were up to. She also made the best of it and took her beautiful family to 'Cracker Barrel' for a turkey dinner! Go Christy!

April,She and Drew have worked really hard and after many attempts, have finally gotten a beautiful home that they and they're 2 amazing children get to live in. I am so happy for them. They will be so much happier in a big house instead of a cramped apartment! I'm also super proud of her because of how she raises her kids. Autumn can sing and recognize letter of the alphabet. She is barely over 2! She just takes so much time with them and not only has fun, but teaches them as well! I hope I can be like that when my time comes.

There are so many others that are doing amazing things right now! If I wrote them, No one would finish reading! It just makes me wonder what I'm doing to help others around me as well.

On a NEWS UPDATE:

Andrew and I stole a great deal for a 2 bed 2 bath apartment, 1130 spacious square feet of perfection! (haha, now if only the woman who lived above us would get rid of her 70 lb. dog-- It WOULD be perfect!!) The amount of room is just perfect for what we have :) The apartment is brand new, never been lived in. It has great freeway access and parking. It's great. We are still trying to finish hanging up all our photos and art on the walls, and also arranging everything. WE are almost done! Hopefully we will sometime soon!

I've also quit the security guard post that I've been working for the past month. I have never quit a job so quickly, but jeeze it was terrible! It is a part of my life that I would like the forget instead of dwell on. My NEW job is with Bryan. His chiropractic office is a little hectic right now, and he has asked me to come work full time with him! His office is only 15 minutes from the apartment, and I could sleep in till 8 every morning (Instead of 5:30 with a 45 minute drive!) I would also have Friday, Saturday, and Sundays off! 3 day weekend EVERY weekend?? SWEET! I'll take it!

So, Monday, I start full time. My old schedule was horrific: Wake up @ 5:30, get to work by 7. Work till 3, then go straight to Bryan's to work till 7. haha--fun right?? No.

Yesterday I got to wake up @ 3:45 to be at my mom's by 4:30AM! Mom, Adam, and I went shopping to Walmart and Then Target! It was way nuts! Adam stayed by me to keep from getting trampled, we got a lot of cool stuff at a sweet price! Whew! Then I went to Bryan's office to help reorganize a few things, mainly his inventory and front desk. I don't really believe in "Fungshui" or however you spell it, but there is something about having clear desk space and thigns in alphabetical order that really let me relax!

10.06.2009

I just thought I would share how I think it is very interesting that people have such a desire to care for animals. I thought we wanted a puppy, got the terror, then got rid of that screeching nightmare within a month. I'm already begging for a kitten for Christmas... what if it's nuts?? My mom and I went to Petco today to buy dogfood and there I was, staring at guinea pigs... then ferrets (the ones with the little face masks are soSoooo cute)...

and then I was thinking about buying an iguana (only $30!!) but then I realized they live FOREVER and they emanate some kind of bacteria that can be seriously harmful to small children.

Then I saw the bearded dragons... you guessed it, I've wanted one of those for years... I walked past the fish and saw some cute TINY aquatic frogs (like an inch long) and thought they were sooo cute (ONLY $2.50!!). I realized I should just buy another beta fish.... but I couldn't think of where my fishbowl is among the masses of boxes.

Then I realized Behr (my cockatiel) was sitting at home... alone. "But he's not very playful" I justified.

Does that much turnaround happen to anyone else? Maybe my need to care for something is going off the charts.

9.23.2009

I stole this from my friends facebook notes and had to share cause they made me laugh and cry at the same time... (I, Staci, tried to edit most of the bad words out, hopefully I didn't miss any :/)

1. More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can thinkabout is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my ownstory that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realizeyou're wrong.

3. Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you'regoing in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to begoing? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the directionfrom which you came, you have to first do something like check your watchor phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure thatno one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switchingdirections on the sidewalk.

4. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I wasyounger.

5. The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. Thisrecently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never beending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.

6. Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn'twork? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fixthe problem. Every kid in in the country did that, but how did we all knowhow to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's.We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

7. There is a great need for sarcasm font.

8. Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger andsuddenly realize I had no idea what the crap was going on when I first sawit.

9. I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actuallybecomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing atthe right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and amillisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really,really gets it.

10. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

11. I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand thantake 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

12. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clearyour computer history if you die.

13. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying tofinish a text.

14. Was learning cursive really necessary?

15. Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else tosay".

16. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom andhunger

17. How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nodand smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

18. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams upto prevent a prick from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

19. What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow eachother?

20. While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road andinstinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart!!

21. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how theperson died.

22. I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in theshower first and THEN turn on the water.

23. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty,and you can wear them forever.

25. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

26. Bad decisions make good stories

27. Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that theirprofile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got theRed Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

28. Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier everyyear?

29. Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to goaround and say their name and where they are from, I get so incrediblynervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be aproblem....

30. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at workwhen you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anythingproductive for the rest of the day.

31. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don'twant to have to restart my collection.

32. There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you aregoing to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

33. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks meif I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear Idid not make any changes to.

34. While watching the Olympics, I found myself cheering equally for Chinaand USA . No, I am not of Chinese descent, but I am fairly certain thatwhen Chinese athletes don't win, they are executed.

35. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello?Damnit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goesto voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and runaway?

36. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeinganyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

37. I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle,then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

38. Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruisingspeed for pedophiles...

39. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers,but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists. (Me: Don't discriminate!)

40. Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still notknow what time it is.

41. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not toanswer when they call.

42. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their carkeys in a pocket, hitting the G-spot, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey -but I'd bet my butt everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...

43. I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone theydrive behind obeys the speed limit.

44. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

45. The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, sawthey had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someoneat the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, andthen estimate d that there must be at least four people eating to requiresuch a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There'snothing like being made to feel like a fat beast before dinner.

9.22.2009

Well, Thanks to Ky & Lynaya, we did receive the cd with all the family photos form the Sanders Family Reunion... I was excited. Everyone took a lot of cute photos :) This was the one I liked of Andrew and I. The others all put me in "bad lighting", though, of course, Andrew looks ridiculously good looking in all of them!

I took this one, riched up the color a little, and added the blur edging.

9.18.2009

Okay, So, as most know, I am still trying to get a job here. Still searching, even though I've had quite a few interviews. So, my mom was showing me these crafty-scrapbooky items. A welcome sign was the only one that really caught my eye. Even though it looks nothing like the original, I like it better. It's got my taste of earth tones and stars that I love. I also enjoy the "O" (made from a Winnie the Pooh honeypot!)

Frame: $20 on saleScrapbook paper book: $10 ( I only used 5 pages out of the 36 in there... that means there is plenty left for more projects!)Time: 5 hours of Mom time (Her's took 6.5 hours though!)

The real reason it was so cheap is because my mom has a surplus of scrapbooking supplies, and a cricket, and at least a dozen cartridges... :) But I liked it: Here you GO!

9.09.2009

It's been... a rough week. A couple of weeks actually. No job=no fun. I constantly stress about not being able to pull my own way to help with finances. Luckily, we are not paying our normal $700 rent for a teeny tiny apartment... which definitely helps the situation. However, I have not quite felt like myself. I need to find work so that I can feel accomplished, and also, so that Andrew and I can get our own place. I love my parent's house. It's nice, cozy, decorated nicely, full of wonderful people... but it's not full of our things... our decorations... our furniture... our bed... our dresser... our tv... our pots and pans. It's slightly uncomfortable. I definitely felt as though we were going to have an easy time sliding right into the transition here. However, with my numskull Staples idiots... I wasn't able to transfer (This in NO WAY reflects my staples). But I did know that I was not planning on staying with the company forever. It's just not what I want to do.

I don't want to be the begger who turns away cold soup or anything... but I just got my degree, and I want to do something with it. I don't want to be the girl who gets a CJ degree then goes into real estate!?! That's ridiculous. Enough about me. As we can all see I'm under a lot of pressure from... myself. On happier and brighter notes. I have a few pictures to share.

April: I thought this was a hilarious scene as all three of them (+ ROCKY) are trying to view you guys on Skype. I thought it was funnny but also really sweet. Adam (+ME) really miss Autumn & Weston a lot. I miss you too :(

Andrew went with Adam and Bryan's kiddos to a canal to go fishing. Apparently as soon as you throw your line in you catch something. However, Andrew was strangely fond of his crowning achievement:I thought it was adorable...After the fishing expedition Andrew displayed his babysitting skillZ....

How he got ALL THREE of them to lay down at the same time is unimaginable! haha. But it was adorable that they all wanted to be like him and take a nap... even though they were faking!

Anyways, the search continues... I can't wait to get the photos from the Sanders Reunion so that I can put our picture as my blog header! :)

8.28.2009

Hello everybody :)We have only been here a few weeks, and already my accent is coming out. It's been busy, and slow. Last week we both had the week off (fancy that!) so we went to the Temple on Saturday. It was cool to see inside a different one other than Mesa's. We are enjoying: and the pride of the people who live here. We have already noticed how nice the people are, and how green it is. The humidity feels WONDERFUL. It's already rained at least 3 times since we've been here (2 weeks)! IT feels like paradise here. So obviously, a lot of changes have happened, the first HAPPY one is that we got rid of this:

That couch lived in my nightmares and my reality! *Shudder*

Oh yeah, short side story about our way here:

I had to go to the bathroom SO BAD! Andrew's dad said he 'knew a place' down some side road. Needless to say: WE GOT LOST.

This is the road we ended up following for some time: IT woulda been pretty if I didn't have to go so bad!

The good news is that we ran into this small store:

This place turned me into a pecan-lover. They had fresh turtles, roasted pecans... They were so good. The orchards we had just driven through were all (apparently) pecan trees for this store. Of course those two were FREAKIN' out because of the found memories of their pecan trees in the backyard in Duncan. They were super good, but a tad expensive.

Yes, we did get a puppy, stupidly. We named him 'Jackson'. He was CUTE, but he was trouble, may he A.I.P. (Adopt In Peace). We put him up on craigslist and gave him away on Wednesday.

The one thing I really loved about him, he was a snuggler. I miss that a little... but I also have stuffed animals that can do the same :)

Good news is, Andrew was able to transfer to another bank. I have a phone inteview on Monday for a Staples, closed-door facility in Irving. It sounds super awesome and it's "salary" based. I already have numbers in my head for what I'll accept. Otherwise, it won't be worth my time for all the toll-roads.

7.27.2009

Hey Heather, I would like to see your family's blog. I noticed that I hadn't seen any new updates lately and then noticed your last post I could see was the one that said you were going private! I miss reading yours!

Andrew and I are quite nervous, and quite excited at the same time. We feel it is our time to leave Arizona.

I was talking to a customer today about the move. He said something like, "Well you were meant to come here, I'm sure of it."

"Oh, I know I was meant to move here. Stop here, just for a little while. I graduated high school here, college here, I found my husband here. I know I was meant to come here, but we weren't meant to stay here."

He just nodded along. He was in a remarkably solemn mood for the occasion.

I think it's funny how at work people (customers) keep saying "Your movin!?! I'll have to make sure and come by one last time before you go! That's a real shame. We're gonna miss you. I'm sure the store will too."

We'll see.

Andrew and I were laughing the other day about how on my last day I will probably tear up a little, be a little sad when people say goodbye for the last time... that is until they call me to the back and present my cake.. which will probably not be gluten free. lol. It'll be fun anyway. I'd be surprised if they actually found me a GF cake. Watch them by me cookies or something-- way easier.

16 more days.... SIXTEEN MORE DAYS!

I am sure to try and spend as much time as possible with my neices/nephews/and sisters. I love you guys. My friends too ;) Jessica, I will miss you enormously.

7.25.2009

I've been feeling... nostalgic lately. Even though it seems like we don't have much time to just sit and think quietly amongst ourselves anymore, I still find a few silent moments at work between jobs and customers.

Yesterday I randomly started thinking about how much my parents must love us kids. Andrew and I have only been married for 8+ months, and I can see why some couples decide to have kids really soon after getting hitched. I am starting to get really excited bout having a baby "bundle of joy" that hopefully will be ridiculously good looking and have the dimples and bright blue eyes of his daddy. It'll be nice, once we establish residency, that we will feel as though we have roots somewhere. A firm footing. Somewhere that eventually we will start our family.

Anywho, started thinking about when I was younger, and for some reason the memory of me standing in the kitchen (I believe it was the one on Paddock) and listening to my mom on the phone talking to my dad. I was young because I could barely see over the counters and they were talking about 'The Lion King'. I remember I had been collecting the McDonald's toys, trying to get the whole set... plus I was totally into Mickey Ds. I remember my mom telling my dad that there was a McDonalds on the way home from his work that said that the toy in their stores' was one of the last few I needed (I think it was "Scar" actually!). My dad said sure he would pick me up a 'Happy Meal' and try to make sure it had the right toy in it.

Simple. Random Acts of Kindness.

Now is that good parenting or what? Some might say they were totally spoiling me by calling 20 McDonalds just to find out if they had the toy I wanted. However, I don't remember begging them to look it up, I remember asking if there was a way to get the last ones. Then I could see my mom grabbing the phone book and start dialing. Spoiled? Maybe. But I saw pure love in this memory. For them, they might remember this incident and think "It was just a toy". But do they know that I still have that set in one of my tubs in the closet? Maybe not. I'm 22 now and long past the days of collecting 'Happy Meal' toys, but I can still remember how kind my parents were to me, just trying to take care of me.

This brought a tear to my eye as the last of the memory faded into black and I was brought back into my work reality of florescent lights and running copiers. I sent them both a message about how glad I am that they are my parents and that I know they sacrificed a lot for us kids to make sure that we were always taken care of. They raised us right: and look at us now! 4 out of 5 already married in the temple, 3 out of those 4 have kids, and my parents posterity continues to grow in righteousness. It's enough to bring tears to anyone's thoughtful eyes.

7.18.2009

Literally about one month ago I asked by a member of the Relief Society presidency to give the lesson in RS for this week. Chapter 37: Charity. Andrew gets a call as we are laying in bed this morning at 9AM to hear his Elders Quorom President asking him to give the same lesson tomorrow as well. 4 weeks verses 24 hours?

7.07.2009

Well, if it totally was not official when we signed our "Notice for Non-Renewal" with our apartment complex, it is official now! We called Penske tonight and reserved a truck & other miscellaneous items (car hauler, dollie, blankets). I'm getting kind of nervous. Don't get me wrong, I'm still siked, but a little nervous. What wasn't already in clear plastic totes, is now in cardboard boxes. We have probably 2/3 of our apartment already packed away. The only stuff left is some clothes, the kitchen & bathroom.

Mom & Dad are suppossed to be getting a call from "Eric the Realtor" sometime soon to set up some times to see the 2 houses that Andrew and I are totally interested in. I'm a little nervous that the house isn't going to work out and all this stress, paperwork, investigation, and time will be for nothing. It's practically a "day-mare".

These are the two houses we are deliberating:

Even though I've always had a "dream house" of red brick. I really am looking forward to seeing the grey one. I think it's pretty :)

7.04.2009

So, this morning was fun. Andrew and I awoke early to be at the church by 7 so that we could decorate the car. I forgot to take pictures--(I KNOW!) But we taped two small flags to my baby antennae & we had a small string-banner-type-thingee.. that had 8 small plastic flags that were sttached by a thnner white plastic string that we tied from the driver's safety belt holder around the back windshield and then tied to the safety belt holder loop on the passenger side. Then Andrew led the bike parade in the 'stang w/ the windows down blaring patriotic music. we drove through a nearby neighborhood. ALL the kids & parents decorated their bikes! It was SOOO fun. I was really surprised. I didn't think a lot of them would- but they all did! So fun! I was the "safety supervisor" and would bring up the rear on Smurf (my blue motorcycle). Well, go figure all the ones with training wheels were left in the dust so I stayed behind with them. It was really fun! It was like herding little duckies & I was the Momma! When we came to Houston (which isn't a main road but it is off a main road and does get some traffic) I blocked the road w/ my bike so no one would pass so the wee-little-ones could cross the road in safety. i think that's when I felt like a duck momma the most! haha. There was a short program and brekfast afterwards. It was tons o' fun!After that, we didn't have to clean up b/c there were a million others helping, so we got to leave a little early. We came home & I ate some cereal before Andrew & I headed over to Staples. We bought this SWEET mahogany apothecary table for $40(normally $200)! No joke! It is sweeet! We had fun trying to shove it in the trunk with 110 degree murderous sunlight. We drove home at 35mph going 6 miles on side streets & we only hit 1 red light! It was nuts. haha. We called the Texas folks to see how they were doing. They said it'd be okay with them if they went and toured the couple of houses we are seriously looking at. Everything with our loan applications are going well and our realtor is super nice and helpful! We talked to Adam for a moment and he had NO IDEA that we were moving there! Nuts huh? He thought we were just visiting. lol! I'm excited to come out and live by them all. It'll be fun. Right now I believe the timid dates for the "Sanders Reunion" is the late night (like dinner time meet up/start) of Friday, August 7th through Sunday August 9th. We would leave with our Penske truck Monday the 10th and try to drive... and drive... and drive. Well, I have loads of frames to take care of and pack (if any of you know how many frames I have, you understand!) so I better go

6.06.2009

Andrew & I have tried to eat "healthy" lately. We have cut down going out to eat & makin more dinners at home. At the present we go out to dinner Friday night for a "semi-date night" and maybe once another time if we don't feel like doing dishes. haha. We are trying to be a little more healthy, and also save money for the move. Here's an example of our dinner the other night...

Before: Grilled Chicken Salad

After:Here is Andrew's plate: *Smile*

I was craving cookies Sunday so I made a batch of GF chocolate chip cookies. After the first batch there was a chunk left that could probably make 3 cookies, so we made a giant one...

Soon all the other cookies were afraid.... (Sorry the stupid image won't rotate)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------As some of you know, Andrew has been playing Stake Men's Softball for the pat month or two on Tuesdays/Thursday night. This morning was the championship! Andrew unfortunately had to work. We won in the 8th inning by one! It was an AWESOME game! I made me, Andrew, Shellie L, & her husband (Coach Lopez) tshirts for the "HARRIS HEAT". I also got the below 3' x 9' banner donated by Staples! IT was fun :)

5.10.2009

SO, This is actually making my blog out of order! However, on Saturday we traveled 45 minutes back towards Mesa to get here. It wasn't everything we were expecting, but it was a good one time experience. :) Here's a picture of the love of my life outside the doors. Here we are waiting for the tram to take us up the mountain to see TIGER SPLASH! It was wicked hot though.

For 1/2 an hour there were 3 guys trying to lure the big cat tigers into the water. They eventually got both in. THis one's name was "Rejoice". She was huge. She looks big right? But check out the next photo!!

I took this one so that you could kinda see a perception of just how big this cat was. Compare her size to the fairly large lady by the fence. That cat is HUGE!

After the TIGERSPLASH we waited in line to go to a SERENGETI TOUR where they drive you around where animals actually are. Here is the Zebra herd: (this is the cute lil' calf)

I was actually the most afraid of the Ostriches... They were huge! And the guy said they peck pretty hard! I had both of them staring at me over the lip of the open bus thing... and it was pretty intimidating!

This was the giraffe that I was hoping to feed.. however the guy couldn't lure him away from the fence.

After the Bear swimming show, we walked over to the CROC POT where they were feeding this little guy:

We got some cool photos. This place was expensive though! It was pretty cool though. If you want to see a part of BEAR SPLASH! Here you go!

5.06.2009

Wow, I graduate in 2 days! Woohoo!!! It is an awesome excitement. I'm pretty sure that I wo't really feel like I've graduated until Andrew goes back in the fall and I don't.... & don't feel guilty about it!! Woohoo

This also keeps reminding me how soon August is coming. I've started packing up some loose stuff and frames that never made it on the wall. I'm exhausted, but still trucking. Literally the home stretch! The only thing Ihave left is tonight I have to do a final for my online class. It might be semi-difficult, but I think the teacher "likes" me and knows my style of "A" writing. lol.

I got my haircut today... it made me 1/2 hour late to class-- but I just don't care, haha. It's time for summer and graduating! Parker's birthday party is tomorrow night! It should be fuN! They are buying a HUGE chick-fil-a nugget tray... Yum (for everyone else). That reminds me: I am actually really hungry. Andrew was a doll and brought me Chipotle for lunch. I ate enough to make me full (which is a change). And I got really, really sleepy at work. I think I can sleep with my eyes open-lol. When I was covering someone's lunch break by being cashier I had a long line of people, and then I looked up to see a guy standing in front of me with a trashcan over his head.My first instinct was that I knew him and he was hiding his identity. I was right. PHIL took off the black trash can and laughed. He couldn't believe that I still worked there! lol. He was in a class or two with me last year trough the NAU program. He still thought I was cool even though he drove an Aprila at the time!! Said that he had actually started collecting, fixing up, then selling bikes since the last time I saw him. I thought it was his wife's idea, but I think he is just trying to buy one really awesome bike instead of several pretty good ones. Anyway, he ran into me at Staples about 8 months ago and said hey, we gotta go riding. Never heard anything. Andyway, he wants to go now! Pretty darn funny how you run into people. He actually said he wants to give me a job. I'm hoping it's not something lame like ZRII or xango juice or something. He said he'd call tonight. we'll see whats going on.

I just realized how tired I was. It is frickin' 104 degrees outside and I'm out riding around like an idiot. Oh well. Just a few more weeks of this summer madness and the AZ heat "CAN'T TOUCH THIS" no mo! haha

I'm really grateful my parents came up for the graduation... even if it was just an excuse to come visit the grandkids. lol. it's ok. It was nice to have someone sitting by me at the dr's yesterday.

So, the dr. has decided to start loweing my predizone. Which is AWESOME. ... since I've gained 35-40 LBS since I've gotten back on it. I'm ready to fit into my clothes again. This sucks being uncomfortable all the time. Next week I get to go to the eye dr. AGAIN to get an exam for new prescriptions... so I won't have to squint so much and have headaches so often. It kinda sucks. But it will all be over next Friday! New contacts & maybe glasses! Woohoo!

4.19.2009

So... because I'm a senior in college-- I think I should get a senior discount at Denny's or wherever else those things are given. How about a "Golden Apple" card from Applebee's. Why? Because I don't see why really old people get discounts for being old. YEA! They've lived to be 65! Give them some funds. Yet, we do not have military discounts until they turn 65 and start getting the senior discounts. Sounds unfair to me.

I have about 3 assignments left of the semester. Seriously, I think my brain has just gone "KA-PUT!" My capstone paper... is due the 27th. So, that's technically 7 days. Today I have been completely braindead. I am so tired. I don't feel well. I'm hungry. I'm thirsty. I'm bored. I'm distracted. I just... can't seem to do it. Everyone says "How proud they are". I am excited to be graduating. Can't wait. I think the real reason I am having so many issues with these papers is because I know they're my last ones for a long... long.... LONG time. Just got a little teary eyed thinking about it. Yet, I just can't seem to get started on this paper. I actually took some time today to put all the little pieces together (Definition of terms, abbreviations, bibliography, abstract page, table of contents) and I have 11 pages so far!... Yet. I can't count the bib. pages so I'm down to 8. That means that I just need 22 more! I haven't really even started my paper. I have no meat. I have everything else that surrounds it done. I just can't believe that the "FIRE" hasn't been lit under my butt yet. It is due in SEVEN DAYS! I know I will finish it. I know I will. I won't let myself not finish. I just hope it's good. NO! I hope it's STUPENDOUS! This is suppossed to be "THECROWN JEWEL" of my college career. I have worked way too hard to screw this last 8 weeks up. And what am I suppossed to do after I graduate? I'm already planning on getting a second job during the summer to help the time go by and to earn some extra cash for the move. That is a whole other ballgame. I am excited to leave here... SO EXCITED. I just am a slight bit nervous of my job openings once I get there.

Maybe if I wasn't so distracted by work... and the BOREDOM VORTEX it creates... or HOME, with laundry, dishes, straightening up... or other classes and their stupid filler assignments.... or helping Andrew out with his.... or MAYBE if I hadn't gottena call from a girl semi-last minute asking me to be on the STAKE ENRICHMENT COMMITTEE for an activity I won't even be in town for, I would be better off. I wouldn't be stuck thinking about it everyday, and having to make NINE posters for them. It's all rediculous. And I've worked REALLY hard on these posters... and they look like crap. And not only will I have to announce the activity to the ward and point out the poster in the Relief Society room, but there will also be one posted in the Young Women's room where Andrew teaches his class and the PRIMARY room! It is going to haunt me for the next 3 weeks!

I guess I sound really ungrateful about the whole thing. I should be grateful to give service. It's just so hard when you feel like the whole world is crashing down on you. It all comes down to this. After April 27th, after the paper is turned in and the presentation is over... I will either feel RELIEVED or FRIGHTENED! Let's hope it's relieved so that I can finish up the rest of my assignments that are all due the 1st.

I'm so tired. Sorry for the rant. I can hardly see the screen anymore. Partly from tears but mostly because my eyes have gotten really bad in the past little while... like a few weeks time i noticed how bad they were getting. I am getting them checked on Thursday though, Hope there's nothing seriously wrong.

4. Constantly thinking about all the assignments or chores you should be doing

5. You don't know where to start

I just keep reminding myself-- This will all be over in 3 weeks... However, because of how fast I'm trying to get things done- shouldn't have to do anything the last week of class. Everything is going down April 27th... after that. I can breathe.

Andrew loves me this I know. Because he always tells me so...

"I love Andrew he loves me. I love my babe yes-sir-reee... He loves me and so you see- we are a happy family!"

"Andrew I loveee you ! Andrew I dooooo. Father in heaven has sent me to you... When I am near you, I love to hear you- Saying so softly that you love me too! Andrew I love you, I love you I do!!"

Yeah, we like to change around primary songs. haha. I figre it's not blasphemous if it creates a good atmosphere.

4.04.2009

There is this crazy dude at work: We call him "Clayton". Lately he's been coming in twice or more a week to "work" with me. He is either nuttier than Mr. Peanut or bloody brilliant. I'm leaning towards crazy. He takes pictures of rocks and finds 'pictures' or 'carvings' in them. He is trying to link them all together to the same artist way back when. Somehow this is going to prove the existence of the 'Arc of the Covenant' and the actual location of Atlantis, and I wouldn't be surprised if it proved the family geneology of Big Foot. I don't know what they have to do with any of this. So Don't ask me. I was actually enjoying "playing along" on Friday, instead of acting interested then thoroughly annoyed. However, as usual, because of how much attention he demands, there was a line of people looking hungruly at me behind the counter when I turned around from the computer. So, he actually apologized and said I would be right with them. One lady said something to the effect of: "I just need to know if I can do this in the self-serve or if she needs to do it for me."His reply? "If you want it done right you'll have her do it!" with a HUGE grin.Her reaction was almost offended, and my glare to him should of killed him. Did he really want me to take MORE time with someone else, making him wait even longer? Stupid. Anyway, seeing the look on the woman's face he laughs: "Hey, it's okay. I can say that! She's my daughter!" The look of disgust on my face was enough for everyone to take a step back from the counter. I told him to leave the copy center area. I walked over to the women and as they started to describe their job, I completely ignored them and said "THAT is NOTMY DAD". They looked at me really confused. "He is crazy if he thinks he has any attachment to me."

He asked how much I made. I said "Not enough("to deal with you"Anyway, just wanted to say,

I'm proud of my dad and my lineage. I have good blood- not crazy blood. I've gotten a lot of good qualities from my parents-

3.30.2009

Well, here I am at work. How am I posting you ask? Simple- I brought my laptop and connected to Staples' free wifi. haha. My manager keeps patrolling around. But whatever. He never really says much anymore now that it's so rediculously slow.

So, it is finalized Andrew and I are moving in August. Our last day of paid rent is Aug 23. I think I'll want to book it the second week of August instead of the last week though. We'll leave it empty for a few days. Andrew plans on building a motorcycle "crate" for my bike. We are gonna try to load it into the back of his dad's truck with a couple of boxes of stuff. We are shipping my car. We will drive in the focus with a month's worth of clothes and supplies crammed inside. We will also be taking Behr with us in the car. We plan on loading up a "POD" and have it delivered at the 30 day mark to our new apartment. When we get to Texas we are planning to spend at most a couple of weeks with my parents- apartment hunting the whole time. Then we will tell the "POD" people where to deliver it. I am so excited. I think now that it is a definite go, Andrew is a little nervous. I think he is still excited though.

I'm going to try and transfer with Staples to a Hub Location (closed to the public copycenter where bulk orders are done). If there is not positions available I will try and transfer to a store out there. Then I will continue training for my physical testing with the PD's out there. Hopefully Dallas doesn't go on a freeze by the time I get out there. I already know Frisco has. Anyway, I will stay with Staples to at least have some kind of income during the "grace period".

Life is going to be changing real quickly here in the next little while. I'm excited to name this the last summer of AZ for me. However, I'm going to miss my sisters and their beautiful children... yeah- I'll miss my "other brothers" too (My sisters have GREAT husbands). However, Andrew and I just both feel that it is time to move on. Really, industrial wise, there is nothing left here for us. I know Andrew is sad to leave the bulk of his family, but I think the Texas scenery will help his day-to-day mood, and when he sees them it will be that much greater. And just for clarification, I'm not making him move. he wants to just as much I do. Ask. Everytime I bring it up I always make sure to ask in case I'm overshadowing his thoughts.

Anyway, I graduate in a little over 6 weeks! MAY 8th, 2:00 PM (Parker's B-day- sorry Nephew) NAU campus. It is gonna be awesome! I am sure I will cry, but it is going to be so rewarding to walk across that stage & grab that fake diploma holder Cuma Sum Lude (Idk how to spell it) & know that I grabbed that school career by the horns & wrangled it to the ground to make sure that I finished in the first four years & pulled it out with a 4.0

It was hard, but it was worth it.

Oh yeah, Andrew & I also spent all day yesterday cleaning piles and sorting through crap, and everything now has a place! I LOVE walking into the apartment now. I am a LOT less irritated when the apartment looks clean and nice and homey. I am so glad we were able to finish it. It's been a long project. But finally, everything has a place. I'm so excited. We have a HOME. woohoo! And the apartment looks a LOT bigger than it ever has. Andrew is great at reorganizing. Maybe I'll post some pictures of the new layout ;)I am also glad we bought this wicked awesome shredder too. Thast thing ran for like 4 hours yesteday without overheating or skipping a beat! GO "MAILMATE"!

3.21.2009

So, I should be finishing my paper on GALILEO but screw it. I have writer's block at 11:46 now that my 44 oz. Dr P. caffeine intoxication has worn off. I'm very distracted.

I

Love

Andrew

Period (.)

He fell asleep in about 30 minutes today. We were suppossed to go to the Renaissance Fair (already bought the fricken $36 tickets). However, we did not end up going to the temple last night like I wanted. So, we woke up and went this morning. I got to see a Sign Language interpretor... Oh my. It made me miss it so, so much. I almost cried it was so beautiful watching the person move their arms to create meaning and phrases. Some of the words I didn't understand because they are temple specific, but I was actually quite proud that I remembered much of what was being shared. I think once I graduate, and things slow down a little, I am going to take more sign classes, just for fun. I know it kinda sucks and doesn't make sense because I have swollen joints and a right hand that is slowly deforming from my rhematoidal arthritic like Lupus. But I miss it.

Ya know those days, those certain days where you just ... feel like yourself again? Watching him sign, made me realize how much I missed it. Just like hanging up my art on our apartment walls made me realize my slr canon that is gathering dust in its case in my closet. I can't wait to be done with school and stupid staples and be able to live again. Be able to enjoy things.

I really hope DPD works 4day 10 hour shifts instead of 5day 8 hour shifts. It would be so so much nicer.

I get to watch Parker on Tuesday and I'm excited for that. If I can just make it through my Monday night class (capstone) I will feel a heck of a lot better. You guys all know how I worry about blowing my 4.0 the last 8 weeks of my 4 year college career.

Thanks for reading. I'm exhausted. I think I'll make Andrew move over and snag my pillow out from under him... the little theif. :)

3.14.2009

6.5 inch Vertical Leap14 Sit-ups in One Minute300 Meter Run in One Minute 50 Seconds4 Push Ups in One Minute1.5 Mile Run in 19 Minutes and Nine Seconds

Doesn't sound that hard, right? Well, it is if you've hardly ever worked out and have no confidence in your physical abilities.

Well- that's about to change :)

Andrew and I are making a change. We are going to be working out 3 mornings a week. Sports and other activities will be on the off days. I'm really excited. A little scared, a little nervous. I love Andrew and he has been nothing but supportive. So-WATCH OUT!!!

Here comes the newest recruit (fingers crossed) for Dallas. Coming soon to the Dallas City near you:AUGUST 2009!!!

3.03.2009

Andrew's birthday is on Thursday! We are going on a trip TOGETHER to Dallas to see area, family, and have LOADS OF FUN!

Here's our tentative schedule!

Thursday: (ANDREW'S BIRTHDAY)

4pm fly out Phoenix (YEA!)9pm ARrive in Dallas (YEA!)Visit a little, play with the pup, take a look at the house

FRIDAY:Drive around & look at the different areas, maybe see Aunt Karen & Uncle James, See Adam & his new girl-PAPPADEAUX'S NIGHT! The Whole fam is expected to go out & celebrate Andrew's 23rd with us! He's so excited to try the grilled gator!!! WOOHOO!

SATURDAY:

SIX FLAGS!!! (WOOOHOOO)

We wake up, eat quick breakfast-hope in the car-- and off to stand in line before the park opens @ 10. We already have our tickets & parking passes! We plan to stay ALL DAY LONG!! WOOHOO! SO SIKED!

Then , after that exhausting day: head back home for some grub and good company.

SUNDAYGo to Mom's Sacrament Meeting

Depart Dallas 3:05PM (*Tear*)Arrive in PHX 5:25PM(*SCREAM*)

It's gonna be a super short trip but neither of us can take any school off...

2.10.2009

Doctors... have never been on my good side. They set you an appointment, ask YOU to come 15 minutes early to fill out paperwork as to not "jam up the process". So, like a good "patient" at the dr's "PRACTICE" site, you show up, take the stupid forms that take you less than 1 minute to fill out. You sit... and you wait... you ask the front desk if they know if you need to take a urine sample b/c frankly---> you really gotta go!

So, you sit there.... and sit there.... and *yawn* sit there. Just as you decide to, then actually pull something from your never-ending baby-version Mary Poppins deep-purse, is when the door swings open and you hear your name by someone holding a clip-board and a stethesscope (however you spell it) around their neck. So, you shove everything else back in your black-hole bag and trudge over. Ge the weight check (every woman's dream).

You check the time as soon as the lady who gets your blood pressure and pulse exits the door and says "Shouldn't be more than a few minutes. SIKE!

The time is now: 3:21. Woah! Only six minutes late so far! So I'm thinking, maybe this'll go quickly, cause I got a million things I need to do. So I sit..... and sit... pull up my legs on the table indian-style and sit... and then lean back against the wall.... and lean my head against the wall and sit... close my eyes... start to drift... when BAM! You wonder "How LONG have I been sitting here?" You check the time. It is now, 3:58... and silently brooding, you decide to give it 15 mintues (to make it a full hour) before you unleash your version of gnashing of teeth and eternal racking. Time gets closer... closer... and at 4:05 you realize:

It is a GOOD thing they take your blood pressure at the beginning of the appointment and NOT at the end. OTHERWISE- you would be under the highest dose of blood pressure meds to "take it down".

Just as you begin to think of what the first thing you will start yelling at the poor unfortunate soul that you first see when the clock chimes 4:15, a *KNOCK!* on the door. Lo and behold, here strolls in the dr.

Seriously? Who made these people who commonly are known to have "god-complexes", the right to make me, their customer, wait an HOUR in order to grace me with their presence? Seriously? If you wanted to talk to me at 4:15- you should have set my appointment for 4:15, not waste an hour that I had to lose work for! Think about it, what OTHER "PROFESSION" allows that kind of delay and gets away with it? Airports? Maybe- but they'll give you food vouches if you complain. Restaurants? They'll give you free dessert. Corporate Execs? If you start that meeting an hour late, you betcha someone's job is toast.

So, I'm royally pissed that they waste an hour of my time, then make me pay buco bucks to let them "diagnose me" with ailments and wonder "Hmm.. I wonder why that med didn't work- let's look at taking this one... It is usually used for chemotherapy cancer patients, it does have a portion of what is found in ABORTION pills, you will need to take FOLIC acid in order to counteract the drug's destruction of your own. So, if you are planning on having kids any time soon, don't. Seeing as this drug will cause defects in the baby. (THAT's real comforting.) Oh wait, you're not on birth control? Oh, your other doctors thought it was a bad idea? Hmm... Well, you will need to be EXTREMELY careful. See, if you were to become pregnant, seeing as you would be taking a pill with certain abortic elements, it would be a very hard choice to make...It is going to help "stablize" your white blood cell count, which will reduce the inflammation. However, we will need to test your blood every 3-4 weeks in the beginning to make sure we aren't totally killing ALL of them and that the level doesn't get 'too' low. Then we will also need to monitor your liver.. seeing as you would hate for that to fail! Oh what's that? You almost had liver failure in 2005? Oh no biggie. As long as you don't have hepititus B OR C- You should be okay."

1.15.2009

Arpil... yeah, I spelled that the right way! Just had baby No.2 Weston! Ya know, I love kids, little ones. So I was sad that he was born Tuesday morning and today being Thursday, I felt like a waste of an aunt... :( So, I got to stop by after work today to visit with April and Mom. Let me tell you, I just think April is so gorgeous. Especially when I see her interacting with lil' Autumn. She is just So sweet with her, and she talks to her like she is an adult. I LOVE that. I want to do that. I despise baby talk. Anyway, back to the hospital--

So, April was saying how she could take me to see the baby. I was patient. Drew showed up, so he decided to walk me over there. Oh man. We walked into the dim light room, and Drew walked straight to a little plastic cradle. I peeked over the edge to see a little boy wrapped so tightly in a papoose of a blanet, all I could see was his head. He was facing the wall, so all I could see was his profile. As soon as I leaned over him to see his chubby little cheeks, I gasped. His little eyes peeked open and he started to move a little bit. I just wanted to pick him up and let him stretch out. His blond hair was cute and stuck to his hair. Tears welled up in my eyes as I realized that yes, this was Weston Hardy. Suddenly, a really overwhelming love came over me.

This boy, was meant for April and Drew. He was/is going to be Drew's little tag-along. I had the feeling that even though we don't know all about him, this guy was going to be great. He is going to be a loving child, a happy one. I can't wait to get to know him. He is beautiful.... *gulp* It... made me... want one. :(